Good Things Come To Those Who Wait
by delta-negative
Summary: post Chosen Faith and Wes admit their feelings
1. So Here's What Happened

Good Things Come To Those Who Wait  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing. A/N: Reviews would be nice. Pease?  
  
1: So here's what happened.  
  
It was three days after the final showdown against the first. The mismatched group of heroes had found a hospital and they were all suitably patched up and rested, and they had decided to impose themselves on the Angel Investigations team while they contemplated their net course of action. So now Giles was driving the little yellow school bus towards L.A.  
  
At the moment, the group appeared to be subdued and the atmosphere was heavy with melancholy, quite different to the euphoria of three days ago when the war was won. This quiet reflection was however, predictably interrupted.  
  
"Do you think there'll be enough room for us all? Maybe we should have called first-" Buffy worried, but was cut of by Faith.  
  
"Jeez B, the guy lives in a big ass hotel, I think he'll just about squeeze us in."  
  
"His place is kinda big, Buff," Willow confirmed "and anyway he would't turn us away, would he?"  
  
"Hey, if he does we could just set all the baby slayers on him" Faith smirked, even though she Knew he would happily open his home to them.  
  
"So who is Angel exactly?" Robin asked from next to Faith, and was supported by most of the new slayers in wanting to know about him and the rest of the L.A gang.  
  
"Angel is an ensouled vampire that fights the big bad in the City of." Faith got straight to the point.  
  
"Hold up, you mean there is more than one vampire with soul?" Robin replied.  
  
"Angel had a soul first, he was Spike's grandsire," Willow clarified. Faith doubted that the others would have so readily agreed to go to a vampire's if they hadn't just fought side by side with Spike. And she was surprised that, given his feelings for the late great peroxide champion, Robin wasn't putting up a fight.  
  
Robin. Now there was a situation that confused Faith to no end. Before, Faith had just treated it like her usual 'get some, get gone' philosophy, which is probably she shot him down when she took her turn as leader. But still after that he had acted as though he wanted more, and that was the confusing, and lets not forget, the damn scary thing about it all.  
  
Faith had never ha anything more than one night stands, she had never wanted or needed anything more, and now there as a great guy who was, above anything else, nice. And she didn't know what to do about that. The logical part of her brain, you know the part that she hadn't used so much in the past was screaming at her that he was a good thing and that she should reach out and grab it with two hands, but at the same time she couldn't ignore the little voice nagging her that something wasn't right. And thus the fear and confusion.  
  
**************************************  
  
They reached L.A at around 8pm, and Willow and Faith gave Giles directions to the Hyperion.  
  
"Okay, everyone just sit tight while Faith and I go and talk to Angel," Buffy yelled down the bus before turning to Faith, who was a little dumfounded at being included.  
  
"He's not gonna say no to both of us. Strength in numbers!" Buffy said, alighting the bus followed by Faith.  
  
In the lobby everything seemed quiet. After a few moments of glancing helplessly around the vast and empty space, the two 'sister' slayers looked at each other.  
  
"You think maybe they went out?" No sooner than the words left Buffy's mouth, when a figure appeared from the office, Buffy was about to ask this new person if he knew where Angel was, when he spoke to Faith.  
  
"So you beat the first then?" he asked with a slight smirk. It wasn't until Buffy heard the accent that she realized who it was.  
  
"Wesley?!" she screeched, startling Faith who frowned at Buffy's outburst before answering Wes.  
  
"Was there every any doubt that we'd kick its incorporeal ass?" she joked, "we'll give you all the gory details later, first we need some where to stay, do you think Angel will mind us borrowing a couple of rooms?"  
  
"I should think that will be all right. How many of you are there?" He soon regretted asking.  
  
"There's the scoobies plus a few, then there's a bunch of teenage girls-explanations later" she added when she noticed him about to ask why they had brought a bunch of teenage girls.  
  
"Buffy!" she shouted, trying to pull her back to the land of the living, "Wes got a new look, get over it!" And with that she turned to usher the troops in.  
  
******************************************************  
  
Wesley leaned against the lobby counter with his arms folded across his chest, observing the scene before him. The hotel lobby was filled with people all trying to do their own organizing whilst Giles was in the centre trying to tell everyone what to do.  
  
Struggling to free herself from the chaos that teenage girls could easily cause, Faith moved away to stand next to her former watcher.  
  
"So where is Angel and the others anyway?"  
  
"They're at our new base of operations-explanations later, remember." He added before she could ask, and although she was way beyond curious, Faith conceded to wait until later.  
  
"I called him and they're on their way here," they stood in almost comfortable silence for a moment before Wesley said, "So you turned them all into slayers?"  
  
It's a good job that the question was rhetorical because all that Faith could do was look at him a little shocked. Then when she tried to say something Wes cut her off again, apparently he knew what she was thinking. "I was a Watcher; I would hope that I could tell the difference between potentials and actual slayers. So who are the ones that I haven't met, besides the slayers, I mean?" he asked referring to Andrew and Robin  
  
"Oh, Andrew used to be an evil genius, but now he's fighting the good fight, and Robin was the principal of Sunnydale High, oh, and his mother was a slayer."  
  
Just then Angel, Gunn, Fred and Lorne walked through the door, and everyone in the lobby whipped round at the sound and stared at the four of them. For no real reason there was complete silence for over a minuet, until the spell was broken when Faith and Wes caught each others eye. The whole scene was so ridicules and unexpected that they burst into a fit of laughter, and thus ended the uncomfortable silence as everyone turned and looked at them like they were crazy.  
  
Whilst it was entirely possible that the two were in fact crazy, the point is that it broke through the tension and allowed Angel to lead his merry men (and woman) down into the lobby, where he asked them why they were laughing. The poor guy looked so confused that they sobered themselves and attempted an explanation.  
  
"Nothing, it just looked funny!" He gave the two a skeptical look but accepted it anyway. Then, in true Giles fashion, he suggested that they recount the past few week's events to each other.  
  
And so the groups gathered in the hotel lobby, spreading out on the various sofas and chairs, or more likely the floor. Faith sat slightly away from the group, perched on top of the counter. From her vantage point she could watch all of the little interactions going on between individuals. She noticed that Angel kept glancing over at Buffy, even when she wasn't talking. She expected that pretty soon those two would be doing some catching up of their own.  
  
The Scoobies were the first to tell their story, starting right from the beginning, Faith sighed, realizing just how long this was going to take. She shifted around on the hard counter trying to get comfortable, until she noticed that Wesley was watching her, eyebrow raised. She paused for a moment and looked at him looking at her, and then she just shrugged at him, smiling when he shook his head and laughed a little at her.  
  
Naturally Giles was the one who spoke the most, but every now and again someone added a little, but Faith only half listened as she continued to watch people's faces.  
  
First she went round the A.I team, Angel Wesley and Fred all seemed to be absorbing everything that was being said, whilst Lorne was also concentrating, Faith guessed that he was probably trying to read people. Gunn looked like he would rather be out patrolling than sitting still, she couldn't blame him either.  
  
The once potential, now fully operational slayers were mostly sat together on the floor, Faith thought idly that they would all need a good kill when this was over, to burn off some of that slayer energy, good knows she did.  
  
She noticed that Robin kept glancing towards her so she caught his eye and they shared a small smile. Wesley noticed this and he more than casually wondered what had conspired between them back in Sunnydale.  
  
Faith snapped out of her observations when her part in the story was reached, and though she acted as though she wasn't listening, she didn't miss a word it seemed to her that this was going on for ever and she started to fidget again, but in reality it didn't go on for that much longer.  
  
"So we left the hospital and drove here." Buffy concluded. Angel and Wes leant back in exactly the same thoughtful way that she had to force herself not to laugh.  
  
"Well," Wes began, "I think we should take a break before we explain what has happened here-" he may have had more to say but Faith cut him off.  
  
"Thank God! Give my ass a chance to wake up," and with that she walked straight out to the courtyard so that she could have a cigarette. 


	2. D&M's With Faith

A/N; sorry I took so long posting this I've been busy, plus I hate typing. Anyway hope you like it and don't forget to review! (I promise to post the next chapter soon)  
  
2. D & M's with Faith  
  
Out in the courtyard, Faith was enjoying a bit of peace and a cigarette. That is until she was disturbed by a short cough from behind her. Irritated at the interruption she turned, all set to give the owner of said cough an acidic glare and insult, but when she turned and saw sheepish looking Andrew nervously rocking on the balls of his feet, she just didn't have the heart: it would be like kicking a puppy.  
  
And so after a moment of dramatic hesitation, just enough so that she didn't look sort, she nodded, giving him silent invitation to sit down next to her, which he did. It took him a little longer for him to find his voice, and when he did he still managed to sound anxious and confused.  
  
"They don't ever forgive, do they?" he spoke so quietly and sadly that Faith actually felt sympathy for him, and for herself, because she knew exactly what he was saying, and so she let him follow through with his train of thought.  
  
"If it's not someone in their group, someone that they love, it's like they don't matter, like were not worth forgiving. I mean, you turned yourself in and paid for what you did, but when Willow went all homicidal, she gets a vacation and welcomed back with open arms. Talk about double standards!" he sighed heavily when he finished and succumbed to the sitting in quiet reflection.  
  
"And they don't listen when you're sorry, because they've already decided that you don't deserve it." Faith's tone was not sad or defeated; she just spoke as if she were stating something obvious, like saying the sun was shining. They stayed in their silent contemplation until Lorne stuck his head out the door and informed them that the meeting was resuming.  
  
Flicking away her cigarette, Faith stood and offered Andrew her hand, which he took warily, but she smiled genuinely as she said, "Hoe about we find seats together for the next installment."  
  
And so Faith and Andrew sat together on the round, red seat, and if anyone thought that this was odd, they kept it to themselves. Although, Robin did give her a slightly confused look, but she ignored it.  
  
For the first hour, Andrew sat and listened patiently, but when Wes got to the part where he got her out of prison, he got more exited and began to fidget. Again, she found herself unable to berate him, a fact which, quite frankly, scared her, because she was starting to like the little freak.  
  
"Did you really jump through a glass window like that?" he asked in awe. Several others in the room seemed impressed as well.  
  
"Huh. You'd think they'd make it harder to break out of prison." Willow commented.  
  
"It was only medium security. Plus, they didn't know about he whole superhuman strength thing" Faith explained.  
  
And then the story continued the scoobies all sparing a thought for Cordelia. The tale was in fact shorter than it should have been, but since Conner's pert in it all was edited, it didn't take all that long to finish.  
  
The less superhuman/demonic of the groups decided that it was time to turn in for the night, but Angel, Wes, Lorne, Faith, Burry and some slayerettes weren't tired.  
  
"Anyone wanna go and kick some demon ass?" Faith was desperate for some action after sitting around all day. All of the slayerettes jumped at the chance and Wesley offered to give them a guided tour of L.A's more popular demon hotspots. The others politely declined and Lorne went up to his room, sensing that Buffy and Angel needed to talk.  
  
***************************************************************  
Faith and Wesley led the slayers around the city, proving that they were a force to be reckoned with. Wesley was impressed, to say the least, and after several action filled hours, he found himself paying for a round of drinks.  
  
The two adults went to the bar and it wasn't long before Wes found him self saying something that he felt he may regret later, but he had to say it anyway.  
  
"I'm proud of you." He said quietly looking at his drink and not at the girl beside him.  
  
"What was that?!" Faith cried, practically choking on her drink.  
  
"Look, I know that I was a terrible Watcher, and I don't expect you to forgive me for that, but I just want you to know that as you Watcher, I am proud of you." She smiled humorlessly before responding,  
  
"I think that I'm the one that doesn't deserve forgiveness Wes," she spoke so quietly and she couldn't even bring herself to look at him, so she kept her gaze fixed on a water mark on the bar.  
  
"Maybe, but I forgave you a long time ago Faith." He spoke quietly, just like she had, but his tone was final. At this point Faith found the courage to look him in the eye, and when she did, she was surprised to see that his perfect blue eyes were not clouded by anger or contempt, and that he had meant what he said.  
  
"Okay," she said a little bashfully, "now that that's out of the way, how about we get our drink on?" With that she grabbed half of the drinks and left the rest for him.  
  
All in all, they had a good night, so good, in fact that they failed to notice that it was almost dawn by the time they had decided to return to the Hyperion.  
  
"Do you know what your going to do now that Sunnydale's gone?" Wes asked Faith casually as they walked back to base camp. She shook her head in reply, staring thoughtfully at the rising sun.  
  
"I don't know." She said, "I suppose as an escaped convict I don't have a lot of options." As they continued to walk, Wesley was thinking about ho he could help her, after all, helping people was his job, but then why did he feel the need to rationalize his willingness to do this for her in his head?  
  
***************************************************************8  
  
When they got back, Faith left to check on Robin, but she bumped into Angel on the way. It had often been said that Angel was ignorant when it came to feelings and emotions, but even he could tell that something was bothering her. So he asked he could talk and after only a moment's hesitation, she agreed and followed him into his room.  
  
"So what's bothering you?"  
  
"You want a list?" she asked sarcastically.  
  
"Sure. "Jeez, she thought, the guy must have the patience of a saint if he wants to hear all my problems.  
  
"Well firstly, I have no idea what I'm supposed to do now, the guy I screwed in Sunnyhell is looking to have some kind of relationship with me, and Wesley said that he forgives me." She finished breathlessly, whilst pacing the room before throwing herself in the armchair a little theatrically.  
  
"Okay, firstly, why should Wes forgiving you be a problem?" Although he thought he could probably answer that himself.  
  
"I don't know, it just is," she said avoiding his eye and berating herself for letting it slip out in the first place.  
  
"Is it because you can't forgive yourself?" she sighed.  
  
"Maybe. It's just I can't help thinking that if I forgive myself then I might forget everything I did and I'll slip up and do it again" all of her fears were coming to light and for some reason she could talk to him without all of her usual bravado.  
  
"Faith, Wes and the others, they told me everything you did to get me back. You're not the same person you were back then, you've grown up and your stronger now, and I don't think for one second that you'll let yourself do that again." Seeing that what he had said had eased her worries somewhat, he effortlessly shifted into an overprotective big brother role, "so who's this guy'? She couldn't help but laugh at his dramatic change in tone.  
  
"His name's Robin. He was the principal at Sunnydale High." Angel nodded to show he knew who she was talking about.  
  
"He seems like a nice guy." He said, trying to be encouraging.  
  
"Yeah, he is,"  
  
"Do you wanna try that with a little more enthusiasm?" he goaded, "how do you feel about him? Do you love him?"  
  
"I don't even know what love is." She said it so emotionlessly that it almost broke his heart.  
  
"At the risk of sounding clichéd, Faith, you'll know when it happens." She nodded and rose to leave.  
  
"Thanks for the pep talk, Yoda"  
  
"Hey Faith," he called as she was about to leave the room, "you know there's always a job for you here, right?" That made her smile. He decided that he liked it when she smiled.  
  
Worn out from all the talking she decided to check on Robin and get a few hours of sleep. When she got to the room they were sharing she found him fast asleep, so she took of her boots an laid down beside him drifting into a dreamless sleep. 


	3. Drinks With Friends

A/N wasn't that quick? But don't get used to it or anything, I was feeling motivated, but that doesn't happen very often. Thanks for the reviews, keep sending 'em, and enjoy...  
  
3 Drinks With Friends  
  
At around midday Wesley entered the Hyperion only to find it empty save Faith and Andrew who were sat around the coffee table playing what looked to be poker. When Faith looked up and saw him she grinned mischievously and asked if he wanted to play.  
  
"That depends, what are you playing for?" he asked.  
  
"Loser buys the others drinks," she replied and dealt him in, not bothering to wait for an answer. It was a very relaxed game, what with the stakes being so low, and at first the three were just making small talk, until the small talk became a conversation about their past sins.  
  
"I mean," Andrew started, "the Scoobies are great people and all but sometimes they can be a tad critical with other people. I mean sure what I did was wrong but I never actually killed anyone like Willow did, she skinned a guy alive and they forgave her just like that." He snapped his fingers to show just how fast. Faith nodded in agreement. The kid may be irritating at times but he was right about this. She had wanted more than anything to be a part of their inner circle, but it just didn't happen, and after everything she had done, there was little chance of it ever happening. Wesley too, had also been in the same position, though it seemed to have worked out for the better in his case/  
  
"Sometimes," Wes said calmly, "people are too blinded by their own emotions that they fail to see past their own prejudices and double standards to realize that other people can change too." He finished by placing his winning hand on the table.  
  
"Fuck Wes! How are you so good at poker?!" Faith demanded a little upset that she hadn't won.  
  
"Must just be my lucky day. Anyway you're not so bad yourself, sorry Andrew; I guess the drinks are on you."  
  
With a big sigh Andrew stood and asked if the could play Dungeons and Dragons next time. Faith laughed and promised they would, and once again Wes was surprised at just how friendly Faith was being with the young geek. For a second he even entertained the thought that maybe she was attracted to him, but then he dismissed the idea. Andrew wasn't her type, was he? He didn't even bother to wonder why that thought would be causing him such uneasiness.  
  
"So, what time do you wanna go out at?" she said, holding Andrew to his forfeit, "9 a clock okay with you Wes?" He was a little taken aback by this, he hadn't truly expected her to want to go out, despite her requesting he join their game.  
  
"Sure. I'm not going to turn down a free drink." He answered, disguising his surprise. He hoped.  
  
Just then the lobby doors opened and the Scoobies plus the new slayers all flooded in, loaded down with grocery bags. Apparently Angel didn't keep enough food in his kitchen to feed an army. Who'd of thought?  
  
**********************************************  
  
So, that evening, as arranged Andrew bought Faith and Wes drinks at a fairly decent local bar. They were gathered around a small table, talking about, of all things, M*A*S*H.  
  
"Klinger was the coolest." Faith commented.  
  
"I preferred Radar. He brought a little innocence to a dark and lonely war." Andrew said sipping his root beer.  
  
"Wes lemme guess," Faith smirked, "Houlihan did it for you right?"  
  
"No actually. I seem to have an aversion to bottle blondes, I can't possibly imagine why," he replied, mirroring her smirk and eliciting an earnest smile from the women who hadn't had a lot to smile about in her life. Faith had spent a lot of time in Buffy's shadow, and she couldn't describe how good it felt to have Wes say, even indirectly, that Buffy wasn't perfect either. It made her feel all warm inside, of course that could also be the alcohol.  
  
"Next round's on me!" she said and headed for the bar.  
  
"She can't forgive herself for what she did, can she?" Andrew asked the older man. Wesley cocked an eyebrow at his companion's unexpected perceptiveness.  
  
"No. I don't suppose he can." He answered regretfully, before downing the last of his scotch as Faith returned.  
  
"Oh!" Andrew cried, the metaphorical light bulb above his head suddenly illuminating, "I just thought of another thing that we all have in common! We all have layers, just like Shrek!"  
  
Faith gave an exasperated sigh but refrained from retorting as she placed a shot down in front of each of them.  
  
"Err Faith, this isn't root beer." Said the former supervillan.  
  
"No shit Sherlock. It's tequila."  
  
"Um I don't drink tequila, it makes me hurl." She stared skeptically at him for a second, before removing the shot from in front of him.  
  
"All the more for us then," she grinned.  
  
"Actually guys, I think I might walk back to the hotel, I'm pretty worn out," he said giving an exaggerated yawn.  
  
"Are you suicidal?" Faith asked him sarcastically, "You can't walk through this neighborhood alone at night!"  
  
"Here," Wesley handed him the keys to his SUV, "We'll walk back later, and neither of us is sober enough to drive anyway."  
  
"Thanks Wes!" Andrew beamed uninhibitedly and said goodnight to his two new favorite people.  
  
"You're quite fond of him, aren't you?" Wes asked her once he was out of earshot.  
  
She shrugged, "He grows on you, kinda like a fungus." She wasn't lying, but it wasn't the only reason.  
  
"And?" He prompted tentatively, not wanting to ruin a nice evening by pushing her too far. She looked at him, not sure how he knew that she was holding back, and for that matter why he was even interested. But still, she found herself wanting to confide in him.  
  
"He reminds me of my little brother." Her index finger robotically running along the rim of her glass. "See, we have different dads, so when our mum died he went to live in Chicago. I haven't seen him since."  
  
"When was that?"  
  
"Seven years ago. He was eleven then, I was fifteen."  
  
"Haven't you thought about trying to find him?"  
  
"I have his address. I looked him up when I was inside, but that's as far as I got."  
  
"Maybe you should write to him let him know that you're okay?" he suggested.  
  
"Yeah maybe. Another round?" She changed the subject so he let it drop.  
  
*********************************  
  
An hour and a half and many shots later, they left the bar and headed back to the hotel. They were six blocks away from the bar when they heard a women scream, and they saw what Wes would later identify as a Grylaf demon attacking a young blonde woman. They now only slightly inebriated couple looked at each other and grinned, excited at the prospect of a fight.  
  
Faith walked up behind the ugly yellow monster and tapped it on the shoulder; it grunted at the interruption and turned around, only to be punched in the face by the slayer. Still reeling from the punch, it took a few seconds to realize that its little blond snack had scarpered, just as Faith had hoped she would.  
  
"Well, she did look a little skinny. I probably did you a favor." Faith informed him, before landing a powerful kick to it's midsection. Now he was pissed. He came at her with violent roar and threw her against the dumpster. Then he grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the wall. The next thing she saw was Wes with a gun pointed at the demon's head. In a split second he had pulled the trigger and blown it's purple smelly brains out, and managed to hold his arm out to stop Faith from falling to the floor.  
  
"I don' even wanna know where you've been hiding that gun," she joked.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asked her as she tried to catch her breath, his hand still on her shoulder in case she needed the support, blissfully unaware that it was his hand touching her in such a concerned way that was in fact causing her shortness of breath.  
  
"Five by five," she could only whisper as he pinned her with his icy blue eyes. And they were stuck in a moment, like in the movies when you know that the couple is desperately close to kissing, all they have to do is lean in a little...  
  
But then the moment ended and they stepped away from each other, a little embarrassed and both confused beyond a doubt. Back with reality, Faith couldn't help but notice that she was covered in purple demon guts and groaned loudly.  
  
"What's wrong?" he turned to her concern evident in his voice.  
  
"I'm covered in fucking demon blood and guts that's what's wrong! Grosse!" tension now gone, he laughed.  
  
"What are you laughing at English, you're all purple too!"  
  
"My apartments closer than the hotel, we can go there first and clean up," he suggested, grimacing at the smelly slime all over his clothes.  
  
"Sounds like a plan. Lead on," and so they headed for Wesley's apartment.  
  
Not long later, Faith found herself sitting on Wes's sofa, wearing a pair of his sweatpants and one of his sweaters. Both of which were far too big, but she didn't care, she was comfy and they smelt kinda nice too, they smelt like Wes. Who at that moment walked through the door carrying two cups of coffee, one of which she took from him gladly.  
  
"You're clothes should be dry soon," he told her as he sat down in the chair to the right of the sofa. Faith tool a long gulp of the strong hot liquid, relishing in the bitter warmth. She wanted more than anything to fill the silence that had descended upon them, wanted to be able to talk to him like none of the stuff in the past mattered, but she was finding it difficult to start.  
  
"Can I ask you something?" she started hesitantly, he nodded for her to continue, "Why did you come and get me when Angelus pulled a Houdini?"  
  
"Angelus is a master vampire, we needed someone with your strength to bring him back." He was holding back, even a high school drop out like Faith could tell that.  
  
"Yeah, but I wasn't the only one who could've done it. And I defiantly wasn't the most accessible, being in jail and all. So why me?" She added the last part quietly. He knew she had him cornered, and despite his discomfort he was a little impressed that she had him exactly where she wanted him. For that fact alone she deserved the truth.  
  
"There was once a time," he began, suddenly fascinated by the bottom of his coffee cup, "when I believed that some more grievous crimes couldn't be forgiven, that those guilty didn't deserve a second chance. Then the world ended. Not literally of course, but things were so messed up that it seemed like it was hell on Earth. I had betrayed my best friend trying to do the right thing. So when it came to bringing back Angel I wanted you, firstly because I knew you would never kill him, but also because if you really had changed then maybe I could and so maybe mankind was really worth saving, because if people aren't capable of changing, and no one learns to forgive, the world will end anyway."  
  
"Were you right, when you hoped I could change, I mean?" she said it so quietly he wasn't sure he had heard right. At this he lifted his head and looked at her. Really looked. What he saw was a woman who had risen up against the odds and done the right thing. She had helped save the world for heavens sake! And now here she was, sitting on his sofa, her toes curled around the edge of his coffee table, her slender fingers gripping the cup with her hair covering her face, not wanting anyone to see her, and she was asking him if she was worthy of forgiveness?  
  
"I'd say so yes," he could have sworn he saw the beginnings of a smile under the veil of hair, but she hid it quickly.  
  
"Wicked," she replied with her usual indifferent expression.  
  
"I'll go and see if your clothes are dry," he offered. Five minuets later he came back in carrying her freshly laundered clothes, and she stood to take them from him. As she reached for them, their fingers brushed and it was like electricity or something. In an instant they were sucked back into that moment, only this time they leant in. it wasn't by much, but enough for their lips to meet. And then they were kissing.  
  
Faith was vaguely aware that she dropped her clothes she was holding as his hands wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer. And she raised her arms to the back of his neck and deepened the kiss in response. In a split second they had gone from a gentle, tentative kiss, into a kiss with enough passion to melt all of the polar ice caps and set all of the forests in the world on fire. And they couldn't stop it.  
  
**********************************************  
  
Coming soon: the morning after (with flashbacks to the night before) team AI bonds, and I'm thinking of bringing Cordy back for Angel as a subplot, just to annoy Buffy, what do you think? 


	4. Later That Night

**Hey sorry it's been so long since I updated this story, I've had serious writer's block, but the worst seems to be over now. Thanks to those of you who reveiwed, I appreciate the support.**

**Finally, congratulations to any A Level students that got results today, hope you all did better than me! (If i stopped reading fan fic I might actually get round to revision...)**

**Chapter 4:Later That Night**

Sunlight pushed its way into the room in uneven strips, forcing Wesley to wake up. It took him all of twelve seconds to realise that he was alone. The bed sheets were ruffled, but cold, so he knew she had left some time ago. He got out of bed and stumbled into the living room. There wasn't a single sign that she had even been there, even the coffee cups they had used last night were gone from the table. Resigning himself to the fact that she rally wasn't here, he headed back to his bedroom, noticing as he passed, that she had left the borrowed sweat pants on the back of the arm chair, but his shirt seemed to be missing.

_Earlier that night._

_They had kissed. Hearts racing, breathless, they had pulled apart. Now standing, merely i__nches apart, he could feel Faith's hot breath against his face, and with her had shakily placed on his chest, she could feel his thumping heart._

_They seemed to be frozen, neither sure what to do next._

"_What are we doing here Wes?" she whispered, raising her head to look at him, letting her hands rest easily on his shoulders, when his were tenderly stoking her waist under the loose shirt, movements that neither noticed or opposed in anyway._

"_I don't know. We could spend all night thinking about it and still not find the answer." His voice was husky with longing and it made her melt into his arms._

"_Then let's stop thinking."_

_%%%%%%%%%%%_

_Some time later Faith awoke feeling unusually warm and safe. As she became more awake, she realized it was because there was a warm body next to her, and an arm thrown across her waist. Then she really was awake, and she could very clearly remember the events that put them both here now. She knew as soon as he woke up Wes would regret it; it would be best for everyone involved if they just pretended it never happened. So she very carefully slid out from under his arm, holding her breath until she was completely off the bed. He didn't stir. Her clothes were still on the living room floor where she had dropped them the night before, so with one last regretful look at Wesley, she left the room._

_Out of the bedroom, and out of temptations way, she could think a little clearer. She rescued her clothes from the floor and quickly dressed, before she got rid of the coffee cups – no sense in leaving him any reminders of such a stupid mistake. That done, she was back in the living room, stuck on what to do next. She looked around the room helplessly, anyone watching this from the outside may have been inclined to think that Faith, the jaded, dark slayer didn't really want to leave, but right now, she was so convinced that sleeping with her former Watcher was something that should never have happened that would leave. She placed the clothe she leant her on the back of his chair and headed for the door, but, almost on impulse, she grabbed the shirt and put it on over her tank top, then bolted for the door, closing it soundlessly behind her_.

When it had finally sunk in that she had left, Wes wasted no time in berating himself for how things had turned out. He wished he had just put his libido on hold and actually talked to her! But then, he realized, she probably wouldn't have let him. He imagined that trying to get someone as defensive and volatile as Faith to talk about her feelings would be like getting blood from a stone.

Conceded to the fact that he was never going to get back to sleep now, he dressed and headed for the office, not that it was wholly unusual for him to be in his office at five am, at least he could find _something _productive to do with the insomnia that only the raven haired slayer could induce.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Back inside the Hyperion hotel, Faith could see Angel sitting behind his old desk, looking just as lost as she felt. He didn't even notice she was in the office until she was practically in front of him.

"Faith," he looked up distractedly, "Um, Andrew said you wouldn't be long. I was worried."

"Yeah, looks like it," sarcasm edged into her voice and her eyebrows rose in question. Her mentor sighed, defeated and sunk his hands.

"I'm sorry. Buffy and I, we had a...an altercation," he began, seemingly not even noticing when Faith sat down, she was glad to focus on his problems as she ignored her own. "I just don't know what to do now. So much has changed for both of us, especially in these last few weeks, is it even possible to go back to how things were between us before? Errrh!" the pencil he was gripping crumbled under the force of his frustrations. With a deep, steadying breath he remembered that Faith was in the room, and offered her a bashful smile in way of an apology. "Sorry, you don't need to hear all this. Have you any idea what you're gonna do now that the apocalypse is over?"

"I've still got some shit I need to work out ya know, so I'll probably hang around till everyone else knows what there're doing."

"Yeah that's a good idea. The principal guy was asking where you were, he looked kinda...tense." As soon as he said that Faith figured it was time she left before their conversation got any deeper.

"I should go and see if he's awake then." She rose from the chair and headed for the door.

"You might wanna take Wesley's shirt off before you see him."

Faith froze with her hand on the door handle. How could she have forgotten she was wearing it?

"Just be careful, Faith."

She looked across at him, silently thanking him for not pushing her to talk about it. In all fairness, she should have known that Angel would figure it out, she should have gone straight upstairs without stopping, hell, she just shouldn't have slept with Wes in the first place.

But she did, and now she was going to have to deal with the fallout.

But not right now. Was it really avoidance if you postpone talking to your pissed off-confused-potential boyfriend to check on a friend who had a fight with her undead-confused-potential boyfriend? Faith didn't think so.

So when she saw light creeping out from under Buffy's door, she knocked softly, entering when she heard her sister slayer give permission, prison had, if anything given her a whole new respect for privacy.

"Hey B, how's it goin?" The blond gave her a big, but completely fake grin before answering.

"Great! I'm just, you know, looking forward to retiring!"

"Uh huh," Faith was not convinced, "sure. Only I just saw Soulboy downstairs, and he seemed pretty upset about something." Buffy visibly deflated onto the bed.

"Nothing's ever easy between the two of us."

'Well duh, you kill his kind on a nightly basis, plus you were just recently knocking boots with a certain bleached blonde that Angel hated." Despite the bluntness of the words the were spoken sympathetically.

"I loved Spike, Faith, he didn't believe that, but I did. But with Angel everything is just so ..."

"Intense?"

"Oh yeah, it's defiantly intense." Her hazel eyes met Faith's brown, asking for help without saying a word, Faith sat down next to her on the bed but kept quiet. They sat in silence for quite awhile before Buffy began to fidget.

"Isn't this the part where you're supposed to say something to make me feel better?"

"Shhh, I'm trying to think of something classy and inspirational. It takes time." Buffy looked at Faith incredulously for a moment before the two burst into a fit of much needed laughter. Buffy was suddenly realizing how much she had missed Faith when she switched sides.

"Okay, listen, I've got something," Faith breathed, trying to stop the laughter. "The way I see it, you two were always trying to put your relationship before the fight, and you always ended up getting kicked in the balls for it. But things have changed, it's not just your fight now B, there's nothing to stop the two of you being together except you own stubbornness. Well, and that little 'happiness clause', but I'm sure you'll find a way around that in time. Good thing's come to those who wait, right?"

"Wow. That...actually made sense." She stated, Faith's words still working through her head.

"Don't worry, it's not a sign of the apocalypse or anything," she laughed.

"Thanks Faith." She replied seriously, and took a deep cleansing breath. "So, you and Robin, huh? Is he what you've being waiting for?" her question was entirely teasing, but she noticed Faith tense up, "can I help? I owe you now..."

"He's a great guy and all, but..."

"He's not your prince charming."

Faith smiled a little sadly, confirming Buffy's statement.

"You should tell him. And, you know you will meet you prince, Faith, just when you do remember not to run from it. I've spent a long time running from love, trust me."

Faith smiled a thanks, "You should go tell Fang how you really feel before you lose your nerve." And so Buffy headed downstairs, but not before giving Faith a bone crunching hug.

More soon I hope, let me know if anyone is actually still reading this...


	5. Sorting Things Out

_**Last cahpter! Sorry for the delay, had exams and stuff. Anyway, here it is...**_

5 Sorting Things Out

"Look I know how clichéd the whole 'it's not you it's me thing is', but it really is true. You're the nicest guy I've met in a long time and I don't wanna mess you around, you don't deserve it." Taking Buffy's advice, she was ending things with Robin. It was harder than she thought it would be, but she figured that it was what caring about people was about - doing things you don't want to in order to not hurt someone.

"Oh." Robin said, not really the response she was expecting, but then she hadn't ever done this before. In the past all she had had to do was kick them out, not bothering about their feelings. "Can I ask why?"

His question caught her a little off guard. What was she supposed to tell him? That she had screwed her former Watcher last night? That she had feelings for him even though she didn't know what they meant? That she might be falling for a man she once tortured? All these thoughts running through her head, and Robin was just waiting patiently. He really did deserve better.

_Well,_ she thought, _might as well start off right and be honest_.

"There's someone else. I think."

"You think?" his voice was a little colder now, something that was a little more familiar to her. It was sad that she could relate better to anger, but it was just another one of those things she needed to work on.

"I do care about you Robin, and that's not easy for me to say," He softened a little at that, "but this other guy, it's complicated, and it might never work out but I can't string you along like this, not when you could have someone better."

She watched him nod in acceptance, and she was almost shocked at how relieved she was. It was the first item on her mental to do list, and she had handled it better than she thought she would. Hopefully, that was a sign of things to come.

"Well, I guess that's it then. He's a lucky guy, whoever he is," Faith got the feeling that he was wanting her to tell him who it was, but even she knew that she should talk to Wes before she told anyone, let alone the guy who she was blowing off for him. So instead she just kissed his cheek quickly, said goodbye and left the bedroom.

She knew that the other items on the list were not going to be quite as easy.

Wesley sat behind his desk in the Wolfram and Hart building, various texts out in front of him, but right now they were the furthest thing from his mind. He had being in his office since the early hours of the morning, and as Gunn informed him as he stopped by, he looked like shit.

"Man, have you been here all night?"

"Not quite, no." he told him. Noticing the bruise on his face, Gunn got a little worried.

"How'd you get that shiner, man?" he asked gesturing to Wes's face.

"Ah, slight run in with a Grylaf demon last night, nothing to worry about." Gunn still wasn't convinced, Wesley had been distant and moody for a while now, but this morning, he seemed far worse.

"You wanna talk about what else is on your mind?" Gunn asked, walking up to Wesley's desk.

"Nothing to talk about. I just couldn't sleep, so I thought I might as well as do some work."

"Uh huh." Gunn said disbelievingly, glancing down to the Brit's desk, was soon able to discern the reason for his friend's distress. "Ya know Wes, I can't help but notice Faith's file open on your desk. You two have a fight?"

Wes looked surprised, like he hadn't even realized the file was there.

"No, I, er, just wanted to check something. No fight." Gunn didn't believe him, but he let it go.

"Okay. You know where my office is if you wanna talk." Wes nodded slightly and Gunn left, shaking his head bemusedly at his friend obvious uncertainty.

When Gunn was gone, Wes's eyes returned to the file in front of him. He had found it in the firm's archives; it told him a great number of things, things that he should have known before he was appointed as her Watcher. Some of the things Faith had said last night at the bar had been bothering him, her brother for instance. One phone call had gotten him a name and address, not that he would do anything with it, but he had done it any way. His name was Jack Gale, and he had just enrolled at UCLA. Not for the first time, Wesley marveled at the weird coincidences that life threw at him, or maybe it was fate, either way, after seven years apart, Faith and her brother were in the same city, and neither of them knew it.

There were other things in the file that, to be frank, appalled Wes. Faith's mother had been a drug addict. There was no mention of her father, but it seems that Jack's stuck around for a while, until Jack was five, then he left them. For years faith had to deal with an abusive mother and the scum that she associated with, all the while tacking care of her brother. When their mother OD'd, Jack's father got custody of him, but he refused to take Faith, and so she ended up in foster homes, until her Watcher found her.

Sometimes, Wes really was mystified at the world. How could anyone let children grow up like that? And then split a brother and sister up who were so dependent on each other? It really was no wonder that Faith was as troubled as she was. With a defeated sigh, he set about thinking of what to do next.

Back at the hotel, Faith sat in front of the phone in the office, mentally building herself up. She thought, bitterly, that it shouldn't be this hard to just call your brother. But seven years was so long! A million scenarios were swimming through her mind right now, most of them not good, like Jack had forgotten about her, of was angry at her for not getting in touch sooner. She had being staring at the phone for nearly twenty minuets when Angel walked in. she looked up to find him grinning like a Cheshire cat. It was very disturbing. In fact, for a second she thought that he was Angelus, then she remembered her talk with Buffy last night and she realized that the two of them must have worked some things out. This actually made her wonder if he was Angelus, brought out after a night with his favourite petite blonde. But she knew neither would be that irresponsible _again._

"Morning Faith. You know you have to actually dial a number for that to work, right?"

He was rewarded with a deathly glare from the beautiful brunette, unfortunately for her, she was too wound up to hold it for very long.

"Yeah, I'm just working up the guts to do it."

"Wes?"

"My brother." Angel looked a little taken aback.

"Oh. I didn't know you had a brother." He said, not sure what else he could say.

"It's a long story." She told him.

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Nah. I think I'm just gonna get it over with. Right now." She decided. Angel nodded and told her he would be in his office if she needed him.

Sucking it up, she dialled. '_The number you have dialled no longer exists.' _She swore and slammed the phone down. She had only found his number a few months ago, how could it no longer exist? Running a frustrated hand through her hair, she shouted to Angel that she was going for a walk and practically ran out of the hotel.

When Wesley walked to the waterfront, he saw her right away. She was sitting with her back to him, so she didn't know he was there, staring out over the sand and water, with her knees pulled up to her chest. He watched for a moment. He noticed her bring her hand up to her face and he wondered if she was crying. Walking forwards, he moved to the front of the bench.

"Mind if I sit?" he asked, sitting without waiting for an answer.

"How'd you know I was here?" she asked quietly.

"I did a small tracing spell," he admitted, "Are you okay?"

She looked up at him, right into his eyes, and she was really glad he had come. She smiled at him, wiping away her tears.

"I tried to call Jack, my brother, but the number I have is no good." Before he could say anything she was talking again. "I had this list in my head, you know, of things that I had to do, that I had to sort out once and for all. Second thing on it and it goes wrong. Must be fate or something. Karma, even. Weird too, because the first thing I sorted out perfectly, and for a while there I thought things were gonna go right. But if I can't even find my own brother and tell him I'm sorry, how am I supposed to make things right with you!"

"Faith, just calm down, okay?" he said putting a gentle grip on her arm, and carefully moved her head with his other hand, so that once again they were eye to eye. "The reason I came to find you, was to tell you that I know where Jack is. I used the firm's resources to track him down."

She calmed down then, he could feel her muscles relaxing beneath her fingers.

"Really?" she asked him in such a small voice that he almost didn't hear her.

"Yes. Faith," he began, his fingers lightly caressing her cheek, "he's at UCLA. He just started this semester." She seemed to be too shocked to talk, so he decided that he would carry on with everything else he wanted to say.

"And I think I know why you left last night, without saying anything. I think that your terrified of letting people in, you don't want to trust anybody, because you think you'll get hurt if you do, am I right?" She nodded, as she collected her thoughts.

"I'm sorry I ran out, I just freaked out. It felt so good being with you, and that scared me because I've only ever had one night stands, never relationships." She admitted, captivated by his icy blue eyes.

"Do you trust me Faith?" he asked.

"I want to,"she sighed, "but what if I let myself fall in love with you, and then something happens and we break up? I don't think I could handle that, Wes."

"Assuming that we do break up, you mean? But what if we don't? I can't help but feel that we could have something really great here Faith. I would give anything to keep you safe you know. Please, just give me a chance? Give _us _a chance?" he said, desperation tingeing is voice.

She looked at him, felt his hand on her cheek. She remembered last night, when he had been so gentle and loving. No one had ever made love to her before, not like that. Truth be told, she had never et anyone make love to her, so what was so different about Wes? She already knew, she was falling in love with him. But, could she tell him that?

"I can't promise you a 'flowers and hearts' romance Wes. And chances are, I'm gonna freak out at the smallest thing, can you handle that? We both know that I'm not the most emotionally stable girl you could have fallen for," she told him.

"I wouldn't exactly call myself emotionally stable either, so at least we have that in common," he laughed, "Faith, we can work through all of that stuff. I know we can. I just want to be with you."

She smiled a rare genuine smile, and he instantly knew that she would say yes, one smile and he was the happiest man alive. He reached forward and kissed her lovingly, and she eagerly kissed him back. They both knew that their lives would not be easy, but for the first time ever, Faith was willing to fight to keep the love of a man, and because of that, she knew they stood a chance together.

"So, are you gonna let me buy you lunch, then?" Wesley asked her.

"First date. Sounds like a plan stud." She replied with a smirk.

"Good. I know a great place just across from the UCLA campus."

Faith could only smile at him, if he knew her so well, after such a short amount of time, then maybe this relationship wouldn't be so hard after all.

The End.

Starting to wonder why it's called "Good Things Come To Those Who Wait"...

Oh well, doesn't really matter, I guess.


End file.
